Fangs

Jersey #3 is missing all 4 top, front teeth now.  

Unfortunately, they did not come out by natural means.

He knocked them loose in a bicycle accident the summer after he turned 4 years old. 

3 fell out early on, leaving 1 tooth that made him look like Larry the Cucumber from Veggie Tales.

That lone tooth started wiggling loose a few months ago.  It recently started dangling by a thread.  

We had to convince him to just let me pull it now, because his gums were getting all red and angry.  I was starting to fear he would end up with an infection, because his gums were not looking good.  The wiggly tooth seemed to be agitating them too much. 

The Referee held Jersey #3 in his lap, to comfort him.  I took a wet paper towel and used it to get a grip on the tooth.  It was dangling so loosely that just holding the tooth was more than it needed to snap free.  There was no blood.  

At first, Jersey #3 was upset, saying he wasn't going to be able to eat apples now.  (Apples are his favorite food).  I explained to him how he would still be able to eat, even with missing teeth.  He calmed down quickly.

Within minutes, he was smiling and admiring his fangs, which are more visible now.  He said, "Cool!  I look like a bat with these fangs!"  

The permanent versions of those top front teeth are not even due to grow in until closer to 7-8 years of age.  They are slow growers anyway.  Much like baby teeth cutting through for the first time, the permanent versions are expected to take even longer to grow in for Jersey #3, because the baby teeth came out sooner than expected, and the gums have healed.  The permanent teeth are going to have to cut through the healed gums in order to emerge.  This process could take a while.

Typically, the two front bottom teeth are the first to fall out naturally, sometime between 5-7 years old.  The dentist has already warned us that those teeth are already loose for Jersey #3.  They are even moving in his mouth, and starting to turn inward.  It is going to be interesting to see what his smile looks like, as teeth start to fall out the natural way too.  

The good news is that he will have less teeth to brush and keep clean!

Keeping Dentists Employed

We had a race of the loose teeth this week.  Both Jersey #2 and Jersey #3 were trying to wiggle loose teeth out of their mouths.  Jersey #2 won the race.  Her tooth came out with ease.

Jersey #3 is working on the last remaining top tooth in his mouth.  It is not really time for that tooth to come out.  It wasn't time for the others to come out either, but he took them out with a bicycle accident.  The lone tooth stood its ground for a long time.  But, it appears to be losing footage now.  Jersey #3 wiggled and pulled, but it was just not ready to let go completely.  So, now, he is left with it dangling by a thread on one side, hanging crooked in his mouth...

These jack-o-lantern smiles just crack me up.

I am hoping that laughter is the best medicine, because I can also see that we will be making quite an investment into braces and orthodontics in our future.

Our family's dental genetics is a dream come true for the dental industry.  I am pretty sure that when my children smile, dentists see dollar signs on those crooked, mismatched, groovy teeth.  When our pediatrician asked if the kids see a dentist regularly, I joked that our family single-handedly funds our dentist's summer vacations.  

Hot Topics: Pacifiers

I was at the dentist the other day....completely on my own, without any children in tow....and happened upon a conversation about pacifiers. The office had a news show on the television, and a segment came up about some celebrity's child who was caught in photographs with a pacifier in her mouth. She was 4. This was apparently newsworthy.

I was appalled. A pacifier at age 4 is national news? Wow. There must not be much going on in the world, if this is the sort of thing that people are getting upset about. Sure enough, experts were brought in to discuss this breaking news topic. One expert was a Mom who never let her children go near a pacifier. One expert was a physician, who was going to give us all the appropriate response to pacifiers. One expert was a Mom who did not think pacifiers were much of a problem. Judging from the way the newscasters were acting about the subject, I knew that last Mom was going to get eaten alive on this program.

Thankfully, I missed the rest of the segment, as the dentist approached and was getting ready to work on my teeth. His hygienist could not resist sharing her thoughts on the subject while they got things ready. Her comments made me wonder if she even had any children.....or if she had even been around any children. I know that I knew a whole lot more about parenting before I ever had any children. The more kids I have, the less I know about what is best.

The hygienist began to explain to me that children should not use pacifiers after their teeth come in, because it could move their teeth out of alignment. I stared in awe, wondering if she knew what age teeth arrived in a baby's mouth. That would really limit pacifier use, if the arrival of teeth were the limit. I tried not to laugh as I thought about the number of times I have seen a toddler hold their pacifier to the side of their mouth, using their teeth. Kids can get really creative with the combination of teeth and pacifiers.

I didn't say anything. I just listened. I am really not passionate about pacifiers. Some parents like them, some don't. Some kids like them....some kids REALLY like them....and some kids don't. I really can't see where the world is going to come to an end if a child does or does not take a pacifier, for whatever length of time. There are so many choices that parents have to make for what is best for their children. Adding more rules, fears, and stigmas is not helping grow great parents.

When the hygienist was finished giving me her report on the damage that pacifiers do to teeth, she turned to the dentist for affirmation that she was correct. I really had to work hard to not bust out laughing at his response. This man has been around the block a few times. He has seen it all. He simply said that he has not recalled ever putting a person in braces because they took a pacifier. He knew of some thumb-suckers who moved their teeth. Some. He said that some people have teeth that move easily and some people just have crooked teeth.

Then, he added that if a child was already showing signs of crooked teeth....and already going to need braces....then you may as well let them have the pacifier and enjoy themselves, because that need for braces is in their future regardless.

SMILE

I absolutely adore this stage of childhood: mismatched grins.

The sporadic fun appears with the loss of that first baby tooth, usually somewhere in kindergarten. From there, it is a roller coaster of dental fun....teeth fall out...teeth grow in.

Those permanent teeth are so much bigger than the baby teeth too. At first, it is a shocking sight to see.

The missing two front teeth are my favorite. I love to see those smiles. I love to hear the sound of the air passing through the empty space as the kids talk. I find this whole phase to be quite entertaining.

Down the road, I know it will be important for the kids to have a nice full smile of straight teeth. Braces will most likely be necessary to accomplish this goal.

But for now, I am totally enjoying this time where missing teeth and mangled smiles are C.U.T.E!

Toothless

Jersey #2 lost her first tooth....the natural way

She is so excited. She has watched her older sister lose a bunch of teeth over the last couple years. She has been wondering when it will be her turn. Jersey #1 lost her first tooth on her 6th birthday. So, Jersey #2 has been wondering what is wrong with her teeth, every day since she turned 6. She has been anxious to get a dollar from the tooth fairy Mommy/Daddy.

Jersey #2 was late in cutting teeth as an infant. I wonder if that has any effect on the time line for losing those baby teeth? She didn't cut this bottom tooth until she was 10 months old.

It finally started to turn out of place, then became loose. She then proceeded to wiggle it nonstop until she got it to lay on its side. I am not sure what was keeping it in, but she finally asked me to pull it out, because she could not get it to release.

Sometimes my Mommy job lets me pretend to be a dentist.....and then I get to put on my tooth fairy wings.

Her missing bottom tooth lines up nicely with the top tooth that has been missing since she was 3 years old. That loss was much more traumatic. First, she ran into a metal chair at church and knocked the tooth loose. Then, her little brother (Jersey #3) knocked the tooth half-out by throwing a hard plastic toy in her direction. Due to the nature of the trauma to her gums, and her heart condition, an oral surgeon finished removing the tooth in a much gentler fashion.

I still laugh when I think about that experience. Our pediatric dentist referred her to the oral surgeon, hoping the extraction could be done in-office (instead of under general anesthesia). The oral surgeon typically dealt with adult patients, and he was not prepared for our feisty 3-year old Jersey #2. She had plenty of experience with medical providers, and they did not scare her. His secretary squeezed us in for a same-day appointment. But, Jersey #2 did not appreciate the wait, and informed the dentist....as she climbed up into the big chair....that everyone else in his waiting room got to take a turn before she did. She did not appreciate being last! She left an impression with that dentist, with her personality and also with her quick healing.

Now, she gets to enjoy having her two missing teeth line up with each other...

She also likes the way that air passes through the holes and slurs her speech. The details of life just crack her up.

And, she is already working hard on the bottom tooth beside the missing one, because it is also loose.

Cucumber Teeth

Jersey #3, lost another tooth this weekend. Our son. Our 4-year-old son. He is now missing 3 teeth. All are missing from the top front of his smile. This is SO not normal.

Normal would be a kindergarten/1st grade child losing a tooth. A 5 or 6 year old losing a first tooth. A bottom tooth. Bottom teeth first, along the same pattern that they grow in to begin with.

Normal would be a baby tooth being pushed out by the permanent tooth attempting to grow into its place. The baby tooth becomes loose, wiggles, and falls out. That is the way it is suppose to go.

Instead of normal, we get the experience of a 4-year-old boy wrecking on his bicycle last summer, and knocking his top front teeth loose. They could have firmed back up on their own. Should have. Would have. Could have.....IF he had left them alone. Instead, we have a son who just cannot stand the sensation of loose teeth in his mouth. His tongue wiggled them constantly. We would catch him wiggling them with his fingers while watching TV. Reminding him to leave his teeth alone has only delayed the inevitable. Over the course of the last 5 months, he has wiggled 3 of the original 4 loose teeth right out of his mouth.

Normal children would be self-conscious about their smile. The public comments, "Oh My! What happened to your teeth?" would be embarrassing. They would be concerned that their teeth did not look similar to their friends and peers.

Instead of the normal response, Jersey #3 is thrilled! He smiles for everyone and shows off his progress in wiggling out his teeth. He is proud of his bicycle story. He is proud of his smile. With only 1 top tooth in center remaining, he says that now he looks like Larry the Cucumber from Veggie Tales.

He ran immediately to dress up in the Larry Costume to show us.

There is a part of me that feels bad that my child will have this toothless smile for at least a couple years (because the permanent teeth on top do not grow in until around age 7). It is a little shocking to see so many missing teeth on such a young child, so he will continue to draw attention and comments. It is just not normal.

And then I look at that silly, toothless smile and it makes me smile. I see his eyes light up as he beams with pride, and I giggle. This is the child who humbles me. Just when I think I know what I am doing as a Mom, he throws me for a loop. He makes me question every priority I have. He brings me to my knees.....

Dear God, please give me the strength to raise this boy. Please give me the grace to not judge him as flawed. Please give me just a piece of his joy, so that I may see Larry the Cucumber in all the holes in my life!

I am blessed to be this child's Mom. God made him special...and He loves him very much!

Teeth

Years ago, there was a commercial for some medicine that was supposedly recommended by many doctors....including "Dr. Mom". That idea of Dr. Mom always cracked me up. We used to refer to my Mom that way, because she became so educated in medical matters from all her experience raising children.

Recently, I have had so many experiences with teeth, that I am beginning to wonder if there is an honorary Dentist title for Moms!

Just taking the children to the dentist for exams and cleanings every six months is a big job. In addition to that, Jersey #2 recently had cavities filled.

I've got Jersey #5 cutting teeth....

Jersey #1 had to have a couple baby teeth extracted. The cavities in them were getting too large, and the teeth were about ready to come out anyway...

Her smile currently resembles a jack-o-lantern! She has been losing baby teeth at a high rate. Her permanent teeth in front have been growing in slowly. We have already been advised that she will need braces. Those permanent teeth look so much bigger than the baby teeth! A couple of them are battling for space as it is.

But, the icing on the cake is Jersey #3. While driving down the road the other day, he casually said, "Here Mom. My tooth fell out." I reached my arm back, and he placed one of his front teeth right into my hand. There was no drama, and no blood (so very different from his big sister!).

Lucky for him, I had already spoken to the dentist about this tooth and knew it was on its way out. He had a series of falls and bicycle injuries over the summer, that knocked 2 of his teeth loose. One came out almost immediately. The other was dangling on, and we were trying to keep it for as long as we could. Thankfully, the dentist assured me that his permanent teeth are lined up and ready to come in, so it will be Ok in the end.

He is also credited with knocking out one of Jersey #2's teeth 3 years ago. She did the first injury, by banging her mouth on the back of a metal chair, and knocking the tooth loose. Her little brother finished the job when he threw a hard plastic toy in her direction and hit her square in the mouth! That tooth trauma warranted an emergency visit to the Dentist.

So far, our children have not been able to surprise our actual Dentist, the way that they surprise "Dentist Mom"!